Back from hiatus, Koepka cuts to the chase
Chase Koepka had a disastrous 2022 season in LIV Golf after which he was relegated when his elder brother Brooks didn’t retain him at Smash GC
Gurugram: Fifteen months after he last set foot on a golf course for a competitive round, Chase Koepka is back on the greens, trying to rebuild his career. The 31-year-old underwent surgery last May on his left shoulder for a nerve damage and returned to competitions at last month’s Philippine Open, an Asian Tour event where he finished tied 73.
At the International Series India tournament in DLF Golf and Country Club here, Chase showed signs of making up for lost time with a steady show, finishing T8 at one-over par for the tournament. On a tough course, he had fairly steady rounds (70+72+75+72 = 289).
The American had a disastrous LIV season in 2022 where he finished 48th out of 52 golfers. He was subsequently relegated with elder brother and five-time Major winner Brooks not retaining him in his Smash GC.
“It was frustrating, of course, both for Brooks and for me. I was dealing with a bad shoulder but I don’t blame that for my results,” Chase said during the tournament.
Chase’s shoulder first started to act up in April 2023 when he was competing in Singapore on the LIV Tour. He played eight more events that year, and as the season wore on, his shoulder progressively deteriorated.
“It came to a point when I was not able to squeeze my hand. There was shooting pain that started from my neck and went all the way to my arm,” he said. Golf quickly took a backseat for Chase, whose focus shifted on regaining full fitness. Timely advice from Brooks helped.
“He just told me to bust my backside up in rehab. He asked me not to rush,” Chase said.
“We spent a lot of time together, even though he was in the middle of his season. I would just go over to his house, hang out with his son, hang out with his family. All that really helped me mentally. We’ve been talking all week. He’s in Dubai right now practicing, so being in almost the same time zone helps.”
The physical pain, however, was something that Chase had to manage on his own. He spent a number of sleepless nights, tossing and turning in despair while trying to keep negative thoughts at bay.
“It wasn’t easy. I would watch the sun go up sometimes and realise I hadn’t slept all night.”
After doing “basically nothing” for the first six months of 2024, Chase tried his hand at practice in June but the shoulder popped out again. “It got really bad after that. The pain was there every day.”
Five months of rehab later, he returned to the practice range only to discover that the neuro-muscular memory had been wiped out.
“There was no muscle memory. My drive was all gone. I think I shot an 80 on my home course,” he said. Determined to take it slow, Chase didn’t touch his driver until the second week of November. “I was hitting only the wedge shots initially. I didn’t hit a full shot until I saw my coach in mid-November and then again in December which is when he told me that I may not be tournament-ready yet, but let’s go play.”
Getting back to play was easier said than done. There are subtle tweaks in his game that demand a lot of unlearning and relearning, something he is still trying to get used to.
“Some of the things that we’re doing is to try and protect my neck and shoulder a little bit. There have been a lot of changes and they still feel uncomfortable. But I just got to keep hitting good shots and kind of just play carefree right now.”
With LIV Tour out of bounds, at least for now Chase’s immediate goal is to do well on the Asian Tour’s International Series. “Until I win the International Series Order of Merit, I don’t think I’ll have the LIV option,” he said.
